The return of Joe Miller

1/31/13 12:57 PM EST

Several years after defeating Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski in the 2010 GOP primary then losing to her in the general election (she successfully ran as a write in), tea party star Joe Miller is looking like he might be a Senate candidate again in 2014 when Democratic Sen. Mark Begich is up for re-election.

Miller is expected to declare his Senate intentions in the coming weeks and would likely face a crowded field of GOP opponents.

Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell announced in December that he was forming an exploratory to consider a run. Treadwell was an early backer of Mitt Romney’s in 2011 and would provide up a sharp contrast with Miller as a business-minded moderate, but he has indicated that he will stay out of the race if Gov. Sean Parnell throws his own hat into the ring.

Parnell is expected to make a decision on whether to run for the Senate or seek a second full term as governor after the close of the current 90-day legislative session, in which he is pushing for a tax cut for oil companies six years after his predecessor, Sarah Palin, helped engineer a sweeping tax increase on the state’s dominant industry.

Parnell has enjoyed general popularity during his tenure in Juneau but may soon have to contend with a budget deficit after nearly a decade of surpluses.

Other Republicans who have been mentioned as possible challengers to Begich include state Sen. Lesil McGuire, Anchorage Mayor Dan Sullivan and a Department of Natural Resources commissioner (and former attorney general) also named Dan Sullivan.

With the polarizing Miller, a self-described “constitutional conservative,” considering another Senate run and an ongoing battle between Ron Paul forces and the Republican establishment for control of the state party, Alaska is one of the states to watch to as the GOP attempts to refashion itself in the wake of the 2012 elections.